1. Field of the Present Invention
The present invention relates generally to applicators for coating a surface, and more particularly, to an applicator having a housing adapted to be suspended from and receive a suspended cable for providing a coating to the cable.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Suspended cable often requires maintenance or repair by the application of a protective or insulating coating to prolong the life of the cable. While many coatings are applied while they are in a liquid flowable state, the previously known methods and apparatus for applying coatings can be difficult to control and operate.
One previously known method for coating suspended cable comprises the use of spray applicators. The disadvantage of spraying coatings is that a substantial amount of coating oversprays the surface of the cable and is spread throughout the environment surrounding the cable. Moreover, since the spray nozzle sprays in substantially a single direction, a single spray nozzle must be manipulated in many directions before the entire periphery of the cable will be coated. Moreover, to provide a plurality of nozzles which coat all surfaces of the cable simultaneously would substantially increase the complexity and cost of the spray applicator.
Another known form of applicator for suspended cables is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 439,916 to Whittlesey. Whittlesey discloses a reservoir device adapted to be supported on a cable-engaging mast structure including a rotatable roller immersed in the reservoir of coating. The roller spreads coating upon the surface of the cable as it rolls along the cable. However, the reservoir of whittlesey holds a limited supply of coating which must be continuously replenished in order to continue coating the cable over long distances. Thus, the reservoir must repeatedly be removed from the mast structure in order to replenish the supply. Since suspended cables are often at a height substantially above ground surface, replenishing the supply of coating can be a time consuming task. Moreover, with the device disclosed in the Whittlesey patent, the coating can be applied to the cable only as it is being used by the cable-engaging mast structure and it is not independently operable.
Other devices for coating suspended cables such as concave brushes are difficult to manipulate and maneuver upon unsupported portions of suspended cable and can require substantial labor to fully apply a coating on the suspended cable. Moreover, the previously-known coating apparatus are not well adapted for use on dual suspension cables in which an insulated transmission cable is suspended from a support cable by rigid straps. In such cable systems, providing a coating is especially important because the straps are often metal and can cut into or cause deterioration of the insulation layer of the suspended cable.